2006 St. Innocent Pinot Noir Momtazi Vineyard - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley (2/8/2013)I was advised to drink up my few remaining bottles of 2006 St. Innocent Pinot Noir, and this one was the first I came across in the cellar. It does not appear to be in any danger of falling apart, but it's got minimal remaining structure, and an odd mix of spicy cola and dark beet flavors. The earthiness on the nose accentuates the beet comparison. Too bad I don't have any beets - would make for an interesting wine matching experiment. Some other folks on CT have likened this wine to a Syrah, but I don't get the black fruit/meat/tar elements that would cause me to go in that direction.

We had the St. Innocent 2007 Momtazi for Christmas Dinner in 2011. We drank it with Duck a la orange and it was a fabulous match with that dish. It was not syrah-like at all (I think that 2007 was a cool year) and had nice earthy, spicy cherry and beet root notes. Medium bodied with nice balance and good complexity. Definitely a nice pinot noir for my palate.